The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-08-10
PHIL BARTON'S CLAIM.

Phil Barton was a big, raw-boned
man. He had stoop to his shoulders
and sort of chronic scowl on his face
He was middle-aged and unmarried
with no very good prospect of changing
his latter condition. He was not hand
some man and far from an even-tempered
man. In fact, he sometimes played the
well-known part of the exceedingly dis.
agreeable man from Bitter Creek
though to do him justice he had only
occasionally indulged in those little &C.
centricities of character which were Sc
marked in the gentleman from the Creek.
Only when somebody jumped his claim
then Mr.. Barton was reluctantly forced
to admit that he hailed from Bitter
Creek. Not from Bitter Creek as it is
known to ordinary people-the Bitter
Creek of the geographer-but far up
at the very head-waters where the black
alkali water of Great Bitter Spring
gushed out of the volcanic soil-where
Bitter Creek was born-that was the
humble birth place and subsequent point
of residence of the speaker, MIR Phil
Barton. And of course it was wholly un-
cessary for him to say anything about
the fact that the residents of Bitter
Creek grew worse the higher up the
Creek you travel-this remarkable pecu-
iarity of the residents was too we'll
known. But to return to Mr.. Barton's
claim-it was q lamentable fact it was
always being dumped.
"Claim jumping" is light and divert
ing form of recreation always more or
less indulged in by Dakotlans in such
portions of the territory where there is
Government land open to settlement and
being settled. 1t consists of moving on
the claim of some other person who has
not yet secured title to his land from
the Government, and instituting "con-
test" at the land Office. If the law is
allowed to take its course and the aggres
sive party can prove that the other has
not complied with all the requirements
of the department of the interior the
right to live on the claim and finally &C.
9uire deed to it is given him; if he can
not he has the trouble-and the costs,
which pile up to the CONSERVATION of all
except the lawyers and officials-for moth
Ing and the original claimant remains in
the possession of the land. But when
the country is new, the land choice and
the claim hunters numerous, the law is
not always allowed to take its course. In
fact it frequently isn't. And the sur
prising swiftness with which the unfor-
tunate claim-jumper is sometimes re-
moved from the land and his few effects
thrown after him is only equaled by the
astonishing manner in which this aggres-
ive parsonage will sometimes secrete
himself in his frail house and welcome
the original claimant with an old shot
gun loaded with rifle balls and ten-penny
nails.
As I said before, Phil Barton's claim
was frequently jumped. Probably the
easiest way to account for this is on the
Mpposition that it was jumpable-if |
may be allowed the word. He didn't
comply with the law. His improvements
were not sufficient. He failed to live on
1t with that regularity and persistency
which the law supposes. Not that
scarcely any one did all the law is sup
posed to expect, but the gentleman
under consideration didn't even do all
the community expected, and the result
was invariably, as he expressed it, "more
trouble bout that claim o. mine"
81 thought I'd die a laughin'," said
Judge Posey, of Buffalo City, as he sat in
his office. "You know I was out to-day
locatin' that Wisconsin man. Well, I
seen Phil Barton out on his claim, in
1866, a havin' it with that Minnesota
man. Says Phil: Look a-hear, ye
goggle-eyed tenderfoot, ye've jumped
my claim!' 'Ye bet I have says the
Minnesota man, 'an' yell find me what
they call stayer.' Now ye want o
gitl' says Phil. sGit yerself!' says
Minnesota. III lick ye till ye can't
stagger alone!' says Phil. Come on!'
bowls Minnesota. 'One minute to leave
an take yer truckp says Phil. Yell
6nd me right here in this here identical
pot hundred years from nown says
Minnesota. Il see I've got o lift ye up
an hist ye off'n the placep says Phil.
well, talk won't do itr says Minnesota.
Then they went at it. Phil banged him
one in the eye and the Minnesota man
brought him an under-cut. Then they
clinchcd an rolled, an tore, an pounded,
an pulled, an got up an pounded, but
pretty soon Phil got him down an set
on him, an says he: "Now, whose
claim is thisi' Il guess it b'longs to a
man bout your size, says the Minnesota
man, an so Phil lets him up an he picks
up his duds an vamcoses, Phil keepin'
the lumber in his house for his trouble
It's bout the quickest way to settle a
contest ever seen," continued the
Judge-''no witnesses or postponements
or appeals or waitin' or nothin', jes' pull
yer coat an wade in. But thunder he
added, lit I'D be rough on us lawyers if
they all done that way"
The unfortunate Minnesotian was not
the only man who rose and fell ON Bar
toms claim in much the same way. "It's
gittin, most so they move on ev'ry morn
in an move 'em off ev'ry night" said
Barton himself, as he stood on a street
corner of Buffalo City. 81 tell ye that
claim berlongs to me an I'm goin' t'hold
it. I'm peace'ble law-abidin' American
citizen, but when anybody tries t beat
me out O. my home there's goin' t. be
trouble There won't be no lawin' n'-nothin'
but jes' straight fightin' an lots ov it.
Them as hops onter that claim with the
dee O. holdin' it, will find that I'm a
lighter right from Thumpcr's Corners.
county O. Git Thar Them as move on
kin look out the winder an see old Phil
Barton comm like slycone, an they